Il-privatizzazzjoni tal-Enemalta

 

Id-dibattitu ta’ dawn il-ġranet fil-Parlament, inkluż illum huwa dwar il-privatizzazzjoni tal-Enemalta.

Ftit ħsibijiet.

Huwa ironiku li din il-privatizzazzjoni qed issir minn dak li baqa’ mill-Partit Laburista li pass pass qed jitlef il-kuntatt mal-għeruq tiegħu fuq ix-xellug.

Fil-proċess tal-privatizzazzjoni tal-Enemalta l-Gvern tal-Labour qed jissepara l-ħaddiema mill-assi tal-Enemalta. Jidher li ċ-Ċiniżi ma jridux jitgħabbew bil-piż tal-pagi tal-1,600 ħaddiem tal-Enemalta.

Il-Gvern tal-Labour ser jittratta lill-ħaddiema  tal-Enemalta bl-istess mod li l-Gvern tal-PN ittratta lill-ħaddiema tat-Tarżna. B’differenza waħda. Din id-darba għadni ma smajtx leħen il-GWU!

B’dan il-pass ser tingħata daqqa oħra lill-kontroll sovran tal-pajjiż fuq l-enerġija.

Labour : ensuring a smooth transition

Franco Debono has made many a statement during the past 12 months. He abstained when a vote of no confidence was submitted against Minister Austin Gatt. He explained that he did so as he wanted to give the man and his party another chance!

He has been stating for days now, that he will not vote in favour of the budget  because he considers that Austin Gatt should have resigned months ago due to his political failures. Whether  Franco Debono will keep his word is anybody’s guess. But if he does the budget will not be approved. We will have to keep guessing what comes next for some more days.

With this in mind the budget’s relevance is limited.

But we need not panic as Labour will come to the rescue. Labour, we are told, will deliver.

Progressive Labour will deliver income tax revised rates which will ignore low wage earners and reduce tax payable to those who are already reasonably well off. No tax deductions can be guaranteed for low wage earners by Labour.

Progressive Labour, like conservative PN, does not agree with the need to revise the minimum wage. It is not in the interest of employers to do so. And it is their vote which progressive Labour is after.  The employers’ vote, that is!

Why should progressive Labour accept the GWU’s proposal to have the cost of living adjustment paid in two installments?  There is consensus between the PN and Labour that the GWU’s proposals should be ignored. It is only Alternattiva Demokratika which has offered support for a progressive incomes policy as proposed by the GWU.

Labour, the progressive party, has opted for a conservative approach: the PN’s approach. It is the only way forward as in this way it ensures a smooth transition,  continuity and stability!

…………… and they looked from pig to man and from man to pig again and could not tell which was which.  The more things change, the more they remain the same.

published at di-ve.com  on Friday 30 November 2012

Joseph (il-progressiv) delivers

Joseph Muscat jaqbel mal-budget tal-bieraħ. Tant li qiegħed jgħid li l-Partit Laburista biss huwa l-unika garanzija li dan il-budget jista’ jitwettaq. Joseph delivers.

Jiġifieri Joseph Muscat jaqbel li min jaqla’ mhux ħażin titnaqqaslu it-taxxa minn 35% għal 25%. Fl-istess waqt min hu bil-paga minima jħallas it-taxxa fuq id-dħul. Ovvjament min kien qed jaħseb li Joseph hu favur il-batut aħjar jerġa’ jaħsibha sewwa għax il-voti (jaħseb Joseph) mhux min hemm iridu jiġu.

L-aqwa li jgħid li hu progressiv. Imma fl-istess ħin hu kontra li tiżdied il-paga minima. Fl-istess ħin ma jaqbilx mal-proposta tal-GWU li biex min jaqlagħha u jiekolha jbati inqas, iż-żieda għall-għoli tal-ħajja tingħata kull sitt xhur mhux kull sena kif tingħata issa. Joseph il-progressiv ma jaqbilx ma dan.

Wanted: a progressive incomes policy

The budget to be presented next Wednesday should revisit Malta’s incomes policy such that the difficulties faced by low income households is addressed.

The minimum wage should be increased in line with the findings of the Caritas Report published in March this year. This report entitled “A Minimum budget for a decent living” had focused on three low income household categories and concluded that it is necessary to uplift the statutory minimum wage from €158.11 to €180 per week of 40 hours. It is unfortunate that both the PN and Labour are deadset against this proposal.

Alternattiva Demokratika  realises the importance of such a proposal in assisting those having a low income to make ends meet and has repeatedly encouraged its implementation.

Another proposal on incomes policy is on the table. The General Workers’ Union has proposed that Cost of Living wage adjustments should be made every 6 months. Implementing this proposal would provide a realistic and timely compensation to those at the lower end of the social ladder.

Its about time that these proposals are seriously considered by government in its budget proposals.

originally published in di-ve.com, Friday 23rd November 2012

Ir-referendum dwar id-divorzju : Riflessjonijiet (3) Koabitazzjoni

28% tal-elettorat ma għamilx użu mill-vot.

Kont nippreferi li kieku ivvutaw iktar nies għax nemmen fil-vot bħala l-ikbar għodda għall-bidla mill-qiegħ li dan il-pajjiż għad għandu bżonn. Imma qatt ma jiena ser nasal biex ngħid li min ma vvutax kien irresponsabbli kif għamel Mons Anton Gouder.

Meta nipprova nifhem għaliex in-nies ma vvutatx insaħħah il-fehma tiegħi.

Dawk li ma ivvutawx  jidher li prinċipalment għamlu hekk għax ħassewhom mhedda mill-Knisja u mill-aġenti tagħha, dawk tal-LE. It-theddid dwar id-dnub, it-tqarbin lill-anzjani, insulti dwar briganti u ilpup liebsin ta’ nagħaġ.

Sfortunatament il-Knisja f’Malta wasslet il-messaġġ li m’hiex kapaċi tikkoeżisti ma min għandu opinjoni differenti. Wasslet il-messaġġ li hi interessata biss f’sitwazjoni fejn tiddomina u tiddetta. Trid li l-valuri li tmexxi l-quddiem is-soċjeta jkunu esklussivament dawk li tapprova hi. Għadha Knisja tal-poter li tippretendi li tordna u tbezza’.  Messaġġ li l-iktar ħareg ċar bil-mod kif  ġieb ruħu l-Vigarju Ġudizzjarju Mons Arthur Said Pullicino: l-ewwel bil-prietka lill-avukati, l-maġistrati u l-imħalfin  fejn ħeġġiġhom li għandhom ikunu minn ta’ l-ewwel li jinvokaw l-oġġezzjoni tal-kuxjenza . Wara kompla bid-deċiżjoni li ċ-Chairman  tal-Moviment IVA  l-Avukat  Deborah Schembri  ma tistax tipprattika fit-Tribunali Ekklesjastiċi.

Il-vot tar-referendum ifisser ukoll vot kontra l-poter temporali tal-Knisja f’Malta. Poter li de facto l-Gvernijiet ta’ Fenech Adami u Gonzi fittxew li jindukraw. Għax bħalma fis-snin 70 u 80 kellna l-Gvern Laburista u l-General Workers Union li kienu miżżewġin (u spiċċaw bid-divorzju fl-1992), illum il-ġurnata għandna l-Gvern  Nazzjonalista u l-Kurja li jagħtu l-impressjoni li qed jikkoabitaw.